Method of cleaning a windshield



April 27, 1965 R. H. WISE METHOD OF CLEANING A WINDSHIELD 2 Sheets-Sheet1 Original Filed Dec. 29. 1954 INVENTOR. RA LPH H, WISE ATTORNEYS April27, 1965 R. H. WISE 3,180,757

METHOD OF CLEANING A WINDSHIELD Original Filed Dec. 29, 1954 2Sheets-Sheet 2 23 T 20 IS INVENTOR. PALPH H. WISE ATTORNEYS UnitedStates Patent 3,180,757 METHOD OF CLEANING A WINDSLD Ralph H. Wise,Davis Island, Tampa, Fla, assignor, by mesne assignments, to TheAnderson Company, a cor! poration of Indiana Original application Dec.29, 1954, Ser. No. 478,284. Divided and this application Sept. 30, 1957,Ser. No.

Claims. (Cl. 134-6) the connection means is of such a character that theblade will automatically adjust itself to the arm and to the Windshieldas the blade travels across the frontal and side portions of thewindshield. The blade in adjusting itself to the curvature of thewindshield will be caused to pivot or swing in one direction withrespect to the arm as the arm moves outwardly and rearwardly around theside, wing or offset portion of the windshield and then pivot or swingin a reverse direction when the blade moves back and around to thefrontal portion, all of which serves to permit the blade to wipe agreater area of the windshield. In other words, the invention serves toincrease and control the area wiped by the blade on the wing portion ofthe windshield as distinguished from a conventional connection meanswhich would at least allow a portion of the blade to slide off the wingportion as the blade oscillates thereon. 1

An important object of the invention is to providea novel assembly orconnection means which, among other things, includes, a housing orfitting provided with a track, guideway or seat, an entering part seatedin the guideway, and means for holding the entering part in theguideway. The housing is preferably mounted on the wiper blade unitconstituting a-component of the assembly and the entering part ispreferably carried by the wiper arm unit constitutinganother componentof the assembly. More particularly, the guideway is curved in twodirections and provided with a conical, spherical, or ellipsoidalsurface and the entering part is similarly curved to conform to theseat.

A specific object of the invention is to provide an assembly in whichthe guideway and entering part are so designed and constructed that theblade may automatically tilt as it pivots with respect to the arm inorder to maintain the blade in an erect or substantiallynormal'perpendicular position to the surface being wiped so that theblade will properly flop during its wiping operation.

Another object of the invention is to provide an assembly of the kindabove referred to which is comprised of a minimum number of parts orcomponents which can be economically manufactured and assembled on a production basis.

Other attributes of the invention reside in its simplicity of design andconstruction, durability, and efiiciency in operation.

Additional objectsand advantages of the invention will become apparentafter the description hereinafter set forth is considered in conjunctionwith the drawings annexed hereto. 1

In the drawings: 7

"ice

FIGURE 1 is a view showing a wiper arm unit and a blade unit embodyingthe invention with the blade and arm located with respect to awindshield of the wraparound type for the purpose of exemplifying theutility of the invention;

FIGURE 2 is a front elevational view of the structure illustrated inFIGURE 1;

FIGURE 2a is a view showing the normal operating position of the wiperblade on the windshield;

FIGURE 3 is a longitudinal section taken through one of the componentsof the connection means with another of the components operativelyconnected with the first component;

FIGURE 4 is a transverse section taken substantially on line 4-4 ofFIGURE 3; V

FIGURE 5 is a top view of the assembly shown in FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 6 is a view similar to FIGURE 3 illustrating the relationship ofthe components of the connection means when the blade is traversing theside portion of the windshield;

FIGURE 7 is a view similar to FIGURE 4 showing the position of thecomponents when the blade is travelling across the side portion of thewindshield; and

FIGURE 8 is a perspective view of the entering part.

carried by the wiper arm.

Referring more particularly to FIGURES 1 and 2 of the drawing, thewindshield may be constructed in various shapes but as illustratedcomprises a frontal portion 1 and a rearwardly extending wing or offsetportion 2. A drive shaft 3 operated by a motor, not shown, is locatedadjacent the junction between the frontal and wing portions of thewindshield. A wiper arm unit has an inner section 4 connected to thedrive shaft and an "outer section 5 has its inner end pivotallyconnected to the inner section and an outer end detachably connected toa wiper blade unit 6. Resilient biasing means, not shown, are providedfor urging the wiper arm and blade carried thereby nent generallydesignated 10, carried by the wiper arm unit.

The component 9 carried by the wiper blade and illustrated in thedrawing includes an elongated housing or fitting carried by a member 11of the support structure 8 of the blade unit. The housing has side walls12 and end walls 13 preferably provided with lugs 14 extendingthroughapertures 15 provided in the member 11 for attaching the housingthereto. A block 16 of a suitable material, such as nylon, is locatedin'the housing and the upper side of the block is preferably providedwith a groove 17, constituting 'a guide means, track, or guideway. Thegroove is curved in one direction, preferably toward the wiping edge ofthe wiper element as shown in FIGURES 3 and 6 and is also curved inanother direction in a plane substantially transverse to the wipingedge' of the wiper element as exemplified in FIGURE 5 of the drawing.Otherwise expressed, the component 9 or connector on the blade unit isprovided with guide means, a track, or a guideway which is curved atleast in two different directions. One of these directions issubstantially perpendicular to the surface to be wiped as illustrated inFIGURE 3 and in another direction substantially parallel to the surfaceto be wiped as shown in FIGURE 5. The use of the term guide means, trackor guideway is intended to include the structure shown and any formationor formations which are provided on one or more parts or portions of acomponent or connector carried by either the wiper arm unit or the wiperblade unit. In other words, the use of such terms is not limited to agroove in the block shown The housing of the connector or component 9also preferably includes a top wall having a portion 13 adjacent oneextremity of the housing, a portion 19 adjacent the other extremity ofthe housing and a curved portion 20 therebetween which substantiallyconforms to the curvature of the guideway. The portion 18 of the topwall is provided with a generally rectangular opening 21 for obtainingaccess to the guideway. As further exemplified in FIGURES 3, 42nd 5 ofthe drawing, the guideway is generally rectangular in cross-section andthe base wall of the groove is preferably inclined or is provided withwhat may be termed a conical, spherical, or ellipsoidal surface 22, thepurposeof which will be explained more in detail subsequently. It can bestated that theconnector is provided with a compound curve.

The other component 10 of the, connection means is carried :by the wiperarm unity and is preferably made in the form of an entering part 23which is curved in a manner to'substantially correspond with thecurvature or shape of the guideway of the component 9 carried, by'

the wiper blade unit. More specifically in this respect, the enteringpart is preferably made in the form of a hook which is curved in adirection toward the wiping edge of the wiping element as shown inFIGURE 3 and oscillates back and forth across the windshield. 'It willbe noted that the entering part is also formed so that 'it is at leastprovided with a lower conical, spherical,

or ellipsoidal surface 24 which cooperates with the groove or guideway.The cross-sectional dimensions of the entering part are preferablyslightly less than the crosssectional dimensions of the guideway so asto control, within practical limits, the relative movement between thecomponents of the connection means. To assemble the components it ismerely necessary to insert the entering part through the opening 21 inthe housing so that the entering part is seated in the guideway.

Referring now to the arrangement illustrated in FIG- URES 1 and 2 of thedrawing, the invention affords a setup whereby controlled relativemovement may automatically take place between the wiper arm unit and.

the blade unit so that as the arm is oscillated by the drive shaft, theblade will wipe theunshaded area in conical, spherical, or ellipsoidalsurface of the guideway or guide means and the shape of the enteringpart serve to impart the desired tilting action or relative movementbetween the wiper arm and blade as the blade moves across thewindshield, particularly as the blade approaches the wing portion or isin engagement therewith. It will be noted in FIGURE 1 that the arm andblade carried thereby move rearwardly a distance indicated by numeral 28and forwardly the same distance when they move from the parked full lineposition to the extreme left dotted line position and return to saidparked position.

Having thus described by invention, it is obvious that variousmodifications may be madein the same without departing from the spiritof the invention; and, therefore, I do not wish to be understood aslimiting myself to the exact form, construction, arrangement and combination of parts'hereinshown and described.

Iclaim: t

l. A method of wiping the curved surface of a windshield which comprisesinterposing; a resiliently flexible wiper blade between'such. surfaceand. a spring-pressed arm carrying'the blade, oscillating the arm so theblade will traverse the surface area to be wipedand during such traversecausing the blade, through the assistance Y of the curved. surfaceandthe force exerted by the arm,

. such traverse causing the blade; through the assistance of the curvedsurface and the force exerted by the arm,

to rock relative to the arm and also about its longitudinal axis tomaintain the blade normal to such surface. 3. YA method of wipingacurved surface of a windshield by a resiliently flexible wiper blademounted on a spring-pressured arm which. comprises substantiallysimultaneously moving the blade'relative to the arm and across thesurface by the arm .while causing the blade in response to armpressureand curvature of the surface to freely pivot relative to the armto varythe angularity dicated by numeral 25 in FIGURE, 2. When the blade 7 i isin a parked position the blade will automatically take an angularposition with respect to the longitudinalaxis of the wiper arm and asthe arm and blade are driven to the left, as viewed in FIGURE 2, thebladewill gradually pivot and assume a greater angularity with respectto the wiper arm at an intermediate dotted line position 2%, and as theblade moves outwardly and rearwardlyon the wing portion 2 of thewindshield the angularity of the blade unit will increase as indicatedat the dotted line position 27. During this movement of the blade.across the windshield the blade will also tilt so that the blade will benormally maintained in an erect or substantially perpendicular positionwith respect to the surface to be wiped as shown in FIGURES 2 and 2a, inorder that the blade may properly flop to obtain the proper wipingaction and at the same time prevent any metal parts of the blade unitfrom engaging the glass. The

between the longitudinal axes of the blade andarm and tilt about itslongitudinal axis and relative to the longitudinal axis of the arm tomaintainthe blade substantially normal to the surface being wiped.

4. A method of wiping a curved surface of a windshield by a resilientlyflexible wiper blade movably mounted on a spring-pressed arm whichcomprises moving the blade across the surface by'the arm, causing theblade in response to'arm pressure and curvature of the surface tosubstantially simultaneously move and pivot relative to the arm to varythe angularity between the blade and arm in a plane normal to the curvedsurface, pivoting the blade to vary the angularity between thelongitudinal axes of the blade and arm, and tilting the blade about itslongitudinal axis and relative to the longidriven thereon by the arm..

References Qited by theExaminer UNITED STATES FATENTS 2,260,905 10/41Horton 15:250.32 2,274,277 2/42 Rousseau 'et al. l5250. 33 2,691,18610/54- Oishei et aL- 15.-250.2l 2,979,425 4/61 Krohrn 134-.6

CHARLES A. WILLMUTH, Primary Examiner.

1. A METHOD OF WIPING THE CURVED SURFACE OF A WINDSHIELD WHICH COMPRISESINTERPOSING A RESILIENTLY FLEXIBLE WIPER BLADE BETWEEN SUCH SURFACE ANDA SPRING-PRESSED ARM CARRYING THE BLADE, OSCILLATING THE ARM SO THEBLADE WILL TRAVERSE THE SURFACE AREA TO BE WIPED AND DURING SUCHTRAVERSE CAUSING THE BLADE, THROUGH THE ASSISTANCE OF THE CURVED SURFACEAND THE FORCE EXERTED BY THE ARM, TO SWING RELATIVE TO THE ARM AND ROCKABOUT ITS LONGITUDINAL AXIS TO MAINTAIN THE BLADE NORMAL TO SUCHSURFACE.